State told it can opt out of Medicaid expansion at any time

CONCORD – The director of the Center of Medicaid and Medicare Services sent a letter to Gov. Maggie Hassan assuring her the state may opt out of Medicaid expansion without penalty.

In a letter stamped June 13, CMS director Cindy Mann told Hassan, "Should New Hampshire choose to expand Medicaid coverage, the state may drop that expanded coverage at any time, without financial penalty from the federal government."

One of the reasons Senate Republicans gave for not wanting to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act at this time was uncertainty over the state's ability to opt out of the program. Republicans were concerned if the federal government failed to live up to its promise to pay 100 percent of the cost of expanding eligibility for three years and then at least 90 percent in the following years.